NOTL Pickleball Club weekend tournament success was no big DILL

By all accounts from those involved, the No Big Dill NOTL Pickleball Club tournament held this weekend was relished by everyone in attendance. 

“The Niagara-on-the-Lake Pickleball Club has grown so big," said tournament chairperson Kim Dunne-Robbins. "We wanted a fun social scramble to encourage new members to come in and try these events.  We have tournament-minded players and we have those that come for fun. A lot of people get tense about the word tournament, so we wanted to host a fun, fast-paced social where everyone's moving and mixing, to get them on the court and meet new friends. It was also a chance to reconnect with old friends who we haven't played with in a while.”

The event sold out within days of posting to the club membership. Lorraine Laliberte was one of the lucky ones who didn’t dilly and secured a spot, and said it was "awesome. You have so much fun. You keep switching it up every game, everybody gets to play, and everybody gets to have fun.” 

The best part," added Laliberte, "was the camaraderie, with a really great bunch of people. I've been playing a long time and this is a good game. The theme was hysterical. There's the “big dill” that's the top court, that's where all the really good people get to play, and then when you lose, you move on down to the other ones (the gherkins and bread and butter courts) and after that, you end up in the cucumber patch. I've been there. That's where you get to cheer and snicker and have a little fun and encourage people to play.”

Would she do it again? “Absolutely, can't wait,” she replied.

Dave Dailly also spent time in the cucumber patch. 'I was there so often that I was nicknamed the Mayor. All in good fun. Thanks to the organizers and my fellow players for a fun and entertaining event.”

Dunne-Robbins said the atmosphere was “lots of fun, lots of laughter. We've had good feedback. We played music to lower any stress. When we turn on the music, people forget they're in a competition.” The marketing was brilliant, she added, playing into every pickle pun imaginable. “You're moving from the cucumber patch all the way to the big dill court.” 

The event will be repeated, but possibly with some minor changes, Dunne-Robbins said. "We've learned from this weekend. We might tweak some things, but throughout the year we're going to have a variety of social activities like scrambles and maybe more competitive tournaments for the players who want to be a little more competitive.”

Dillightful!